Scared
by Paris in October
Summary: Teresa Lisbon has put over six hundred criminals behind bars. Now one of them is seeking revenge and he wants only one thing - Lisbon's death. The team has to find him before he finally succeeds, but the clues seem to be leading them nowhere. Jisbon friendship, rated T just in case. Please read and review!
1. Bloody Friday

**Hey guys! waves shyly This is my first "Mentalist" fanfic, so please be understanding . I have seen a mind-boggling number of episodes so far – four :) But I totally fell in love with the show. Some characters might be a bit OOC (because I'm a "Mentalist" expert...), but I'm doing my best.**

**It's just a short introduction to check if you'll like it. Please let me know whether I should continue this or rather go away and never come back :)**

**The story is set right after the episode 2x05, "Red Scare". Enjoy!**

**Oh, and one more thing – I'm not a native speaker, sorry in advance for the mistakes. If you find any, please let me know!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Mentalist", I only own my laptop.**

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><p><em>Chapter one<em>

"_You are the dancing queen, young and sweet, only seventeen  
>Dancing queen, feel the beat from the tambourine..."<em>

The taxi driver was singing along with the radio, tapping out the rhythm on the steering wheel. To be honest, he wasn't the best singer in the world. ABBA didn't protest, though, nor did his passenger.

The driver glanced in the rear mirror. The blonde man on the back seat was looking out of the window.

"Don't I annoy you, sir?" he asked, just in case. Annoyed passengers don't give tips.

The man smiled. "No, of course not. I like ABBA. And it's Friday, nothing can spoil it."

Patrick Jane was in a very good mood. The CBI team has just solved the case, caught the murderer and discovered a very good champagne. Plus, Friday afternoon meant no work the next day. Jane liked his job, of course, but he also liked weekends. He didn't have to get up early to get to the office before Lisbon, there were no dead bodies, no uncooperative families. Just perfect.

He had to take a taxi, but a singing driver was a low price for that excellent champagne.

"_You can dance, you can jive,_

_having the time of your life..."_

No, maybe not that low. Thankfully, before the song ended, they stopped in front of his apartment. Jane paid, leaving the amateur singer a tip.

"Thank you, sir. Have a nice day!"

Jane smiled and walked towards the door, looking for his keys. Left pocket was empty. Raising his eyebrows, he checked in the right pocket. Nothing. He searched every pocket, rummaged through his bag, only to find out the obvious – he had left the keys in the office.

_Brilliant._ Jane took out his mobile phone. Maybe Lisbon was still there and could bring him these damn keys...

She didn't answer. Jane sighed and called a taxi again. He had to go back to the office, find the keys and take another taxi home. _Just brilliant..._

When the taxi finally came, he couldn't help smiling. The familiar driver wove to him.

"Where now, sir?"

Jane sat on the back seat and sighed. "Back to the CBI, I guess. I've forgotten to take my keys."

"Oh, what a pity. But I have some good news – I'm not gonna sing 'Dancing Queen' any more."

"It wasn't that bad, you know..." They both laughed.

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><p>"Shall I wait for you, sir?" asked the driver when they arrived at CBI headquarters.<p>

"Um, no, thank you. I'm not sure how long I'll look for that damn keys."

Jane paid for the second time, gave the driver the second tip for _not _singing this time and entered the silent building.

The guard was surprised to see him. "Good evening, Mr Jane. What are you doing here? I understand that Ms Lisbon is working on Friday night, but you?"

Jane raised his eyebrows. "Is Lisbon still here?"

"There are no cameras in her office, but I haven't seen her leaving, so I guess the answer is yes."

_Of course, _thought Jane, entering the elevator. _Senior workaholic Teresa 'Fill 'em all' Lisbon_.

At first he wanted to get into the bullpen making no sound and scare her. He gave up that idea, though. It would be childish, and Jane didn't want Lisbon to think he _is_ childish. So instead of that, he opened the door and called out loud, "Hey, Lisbon! Your knight in the shining armor has just come to take you from that terrible place!"

She didn't answered. "Hello! Anybody home?" he tried again. Her office door were closed, but he didn't waste time for knocking and just entered the room. The lights were off, but the street lamps enabled him to distinguish the shapes.

Lisbon was lying motionless on the floor. With pounding heart, Jane quickly knelt beside her.

"Jesus Christ..."

Everything was covered with blood – there was blood on her white shirt, blood on her hands, stains of blood on the floor. Jane's hands were shaking when he checked her pulse and dialed 911.

"Patrick Jane, CBI. I need an ambulance to CBI headquarters, now!" he nearly yelled on the phone, glancing nervously at unconscious Lisbon. He gave all the details to the dispatcher and hung up.

"You're not a CBI agent," he suddenly heard a weak whisper. He quickly leaned over Lisbon and sighed with relief. She was half-conscious from pain, but definitely still alive.

"Lisbon! Thank God. What happened?" he asked, grabbing her hand.

"I- I don't know..." she said with visible effort. "Someone... shot me. But I haven't... seen him... Oh God," she gave out a cry of pain.

"Okay, don't talk," said Jane, squeezing her hand soothingly. "An ambulance is on the way."

Lisbon was breathing heavily. "Don't worry..." she whispered again. "I'll be fine..."

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><p><strong>Fifty minutes earlier<strong>

"Okay, so see you on Monday!"

Cho wove goodbye to Lisbon and Jane and left the office. Rigsby and Van Pelt had disappeared half an hour earlier, too excited to explain anything.

Jane and Lisbon were alone.

"We've done a good job today, boss," the man smiled to Lisbon, refilling her cup.

"Oh, yes. Thanks to your brilliant idea, to be honest."

"Don't be so modest, you were really good. Especially at yelling at me in the mansion."

Lisbon laughed. "Practice makes perfect, don't you know?"

"I'm not going to comment on that. Shall we go?"

"I have to stay and finish the report, unfortunately," Lisbon sighed.

"Really? A report? Come on, it's Friday evening! And we've drunk a lot of champagne, you can't work now."

"_You_ have drunk half of the bottle yourself, I've only tried it. A cup or two... Plus, I'd rather do this on Friday evening than on Monday morning."

Jane winced. "Don't use the 'M' word! Okay, so stay and write, and I'm going home. See you!"

"Have a nice weekend," said Lisbon, turning her computer on.

Jane left, and she sighed. She _really_ didn't want to write that damn report, but had no choice. She didn't come up with the simplest idea - that she could just do it at home, sitting with a laptop on her own couch.

Lisbon sighed one last time and started writing.

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><p><em>There were only two people in the room - a man, probably that consultant, Jane, and Teresa Lisbon. Three other agents had left some time ago.<em>

_From his position on the roof he couldn't hear anything, but he could clearly see what was going on in the office._

_They were talking and laughing, and after a few minutes the consultant left. Agent Lisbon sat behind her desk and started working._

_There were no cameras in Lisbon's office, the man on the roof knew it. He had checked it twice. Four cameras in the bullpen, not a single one inside the room. So no one would see that. No one would help her._

_He waited patiently._

_After half an hour his patience nearly gave out - but in that very moment Teresa Lisbon stood up. She went towards the printer and took out a few sheets of paper._

_She was now standing in the middle of the room, facing the open window. The man quickly assessed the distance. There was no time to hesitate._

_He took a deep breath and pulled the trigger._

_He was too far to hear anything, so he didn't know if the woman screamed, cried or at least moaned._

_He couldn't hear, but he could see. Emotionless, he watched as the shock appeared on her face and she fell to the floor unconscious._

_The sniper waited for a moment, but no one came. _It's over, agent Lisbon_, he thought. Someone would find her, of course. On Monday. But it would be too late._

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><p><strong>Okay, so what do you think? Please let me know! :)<strong>


	2. Alone

**Hey there! Thanks a lot for the reviews, I really love to read them :) I hope you'll enjoy chapter two. Here we go :)**

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><p><em>She will be fine, she will be fine, <em>Jane was telling himself for the hundredth time.

He was sitting in the hospital lounge, waiting for any information about Lisbon's condition. He had already spent there an hour and was becoming more and more nervous.

"Patrick!"

Jane raised his head and saw a black-haired woman coming towards him. It was Gabrielle, his childhood friend. She was now a surgeon, the head of the Intensive Care Unit.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, sitting down next to him.

"My friend got shot, and the doctors don't want to tell me anything. I don't know what is going on, how bad she is..."

"Why don't you show them your posh CBI badge? They'll tell you everything."

"I don't have one. I'm just a consultant." Jane shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh, that's so unfair," Gabrielle smiled a little. "Stay here and I'll check. What's her name?"

"Lisbon. Teresa Lisbon."

"Okay, I'll be back in a minute." Gabrielle stood up and squeezed his hand. "I'm sure she'll be fine."

Jane watched as Gabrielle disappeared behind the glass door of ICU. He stood up and started pacing up and down the corridor. It was hard to believe - only a few hours earlier they were laughing and joking, and now Lisbon was in the ICU, seriously hurt. He shook his head.

He couldn't lose her.

After that terrible night when his wife and daughter had died, he had been like a shadow of a man. Lisbon had helped him a lot, literally brought him back to life. She was more than a friend, she had saved him. Thanks to her, he wasn't alone. She was always by his side during his war against Red John. And now... No, no, he couldn't even think about it. She would be fine, she had to be fine...

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><p>Darkness. Her eyelids were so heavy... Lisbon could hear muffled voices around her, but it was too difficult to open her eyes, so she just laid still.<p>

Darkness – and pain. Sharp, burning, unbearable pain in her stomach was the only proof she was still alive. She tried to move, but that only made it worse.

A wave of panic flooded her. She didn't know what to do, she couldn't move. And the pain, pain that made it impossible to think clearly. She _had to_ do something, she couldn't stay there. But it was so difficult...

Someone took her hand. "Miss Lisbon, can you hear me? Try to open your eyes, please." A man's voice, deep, soothing voice.

Darkness was frightening her. But, on the other hand, it was safe and warm. Only that pain...

"Miss Lisbon, please. It's very important."

She tried. She lifted her eyelids just a little bit, but the bright lights in the room dazzled her. She winced and shut her eyes again.

"Dim the lamps," ordered the same voice, and after a while asked, "Just try once again for me, okay?"

It was easier this time. Everything was blurred and she felt dizzy, but she managed to look around. She was lying in a clean room, surrounded by people wearing white clothes. _Okay, so it's a hospital_, she thought with relief.

The doctor who had talked to her was standing next to the bed. He was tall and well-built, and something in his posture told Lisbon he knew what he was doing. He smiled to her. "Very well. Now, do you remember what happened and how you got here?"

The memories of the terrible Friday night hit her. Quiet office, sunset, sudden pain... And Jane, kneeling next to her. Where was he?

Lisbon tried to answer, but her mouth was dry and she couldn't make any sound. Instead, she just nodded slightly and sighed.

The doctor started explaining something to her, but she couldn't focus on his words. She was so dizzy... She understood only "bullet", "surgery" and "help", but that didn't make any sense to her confused brain.

"Do you agree, Miss Lisbon?"

She had no idea what he was asking about, but it didn't matter. She just wanted them to leave her alone. She wanted the pain to disappear. She wanted to sleep.

Lisbon nodded, and then fell into nothingness again.

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><p>After what seemed like ages, Gabrielle came back.<p>

"Come on, you can now see her." She smiled at his face expression. "Don't worry, she will be okay," she assured him as they were walking. "Doctors removed the bullet, thankfully it didn't damage any important organs."

Gabrielle stopped in front of the door and let Jane in.

Lisbon was asleep. She looked so calm, only the various devices and IV drips reminded of her serious condition.

"My God." Jane sat on the chair next to the bed. "She's so pale..."

"She has lost a lot of blood, but she's young and strong." Gabrielle stood behind him. "She'll be fine, she only have to rest. You can stay here, just try not to wake her, okay?"

"Sure," answered Jane absent-mindedly, without looking at Gabrielle.

"I'll check on her later."

The woman glanced at the monitors for the last time and went towards the door.

"Oh, Gabby?"

"Yes?" She turned to him.

"Thank you."

Gabrielle smiled. "Take care of her."

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><p>Lisbon woke up three hours later. The room was dark and for a moment she didn't know where she was. The dull pain quickly reminded her of the evening events.<p>

Something - or somebody - was half-lying on her bed. Lisbon tried to sit up, but it only caused more pain. She groaned.

The dark shape on her bed moved and leaned over her.

"Jane?" She whispered, surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"Trying not to wake you up," he said. "How do you feel?"

"Not that bad... Told you I would be fine," she answered, although her weak voice indicated just the opposite.

"Oh yes, the invincible agent Lisbon," he joked, smiling weakly.

Lisbon laughed, but nearly immediately winced. "I've never supposed it would hurt so much."

Jane looked worried. "Maybe I should call the doctor? They will give you morphine or something."

"No, it's okay..."

Jane could see she was trying to be strong and brave. She would never ever show weakness. Invincible Lisbon. It was touching, but he couldn't watch her suffer.

"You don't have to act as a hero all the time, you know?" he said warmly. "I'll go find the doctor."

But before he stood up, the door opened and Gabrielle entered the room.

"See?" Jane pointed at her. "Have no fear, your doctor is here. This is Gabrielle, my old friend."

"Gabrielle Marks," the woman smiled to her. "How do you feel, miss Lisbon?"

"I've already asked," announced Jane proudly. "She says she's fine, but she's not."

"Hey, Patrick, I have a great idea. Why don't you wait outside and I'll examine your friend?" Gabrielle turned to him with a professional smile and shown him the door.

"Okay, don't shoot." He raised his arms and winked to Lisbon. "If she tries to hurt you, just scream and I'll be right back."

Despite the pain, Lisbon rolled her eyes and laughed.

"Patrick, out," ordered Gabrielle, but she was laughing too.

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><p><strong>Okay, so that was chapter two. What do you think? :) Review, pretty, pretty please! Reviews made my day better than Nutella :)<strong>


	3. Broken heart

**Ladies and gentleman, chapter three is up! Thanks for the reviews, and many thanks espec****ially to ****funnygirlOoObroadwaybaby. I've already corrected that stupid mistake :)**

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><p>When Gabrielle entered Lisbon's room on Monday morning, she found Jane still curled on the very same uncomfortable plastic chair. He wasn't asleep; he wouldn't let himself sleep. He had to be awake, just in case Lisbon needed him.<p>

Gabrielle quietly closed the door behind her and came closer. As her heels clicked on the floor, Jane started and turned to her.

"Hey." She smiled and handed him a cup of coffee. "You look terrible. Haven't you slept at all?"

"Not really. I wasn't tired." He shrugged his shoulders, pretty sure Gabrielle wouldn't believe. Since Friday night, he almost hadn't moved from that chair. He had been too worried to leave Lisbon alone even for a few minutes. He had only left during examinations, and even then Gabrielle had to literally kick him out.

"Yeah, right. How is she?"

"Asleep almost all the time. Is it normal? Is she supposed to sleep that much?"

The woman could hear the concern is his voice. Oh God, he really cared. For the first time in years Patrick Jane cared for someone. That was unusual.

Gabrielle carefully studied Lisbon's face. "It's better for her that way. No pain. No thinking. No fear. And the more she rests, the sooner she will recover." She gave Jane a quick glance. "It's Monday. Aren't you supposed to go to work?"

"I'm pretty sure my boss won't be mad if I don't."

He gently brushed a black curl off Lisbon's face and looked at Gabrielle. He was so miserable that she just came closer and hugged him. "She'll be fine," she said for the hundredth time in the past three days. "She's really lucky to have you around. But someone has to tell _her_ boss what happened."

Jane sighed. "Right. I'll just wait until she wakes up and then I'll go."

"Patrick, really, nothing will happen if you go now. You will wait till she wakes up, then you will want to talk to her, and then you will wait till I examine her... I can bet it will be midnight by then." She smiled. "Just go. I'll be around all the time, and I promise to check on her every fifteen minutes."

"Okay," Jane finally gave up. He took his jacket and stood up.

"Oh, and you know what?" She gave him a critical look. "Change your clothes before going to the office, will you?"

Jane grinned, straightened his shirt ostentatiously and left.

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><p><em>This time agent Lisbon was lucky. That damn consultant had appeared out of nowhere, just in time to save her worthless life.<em>

_The man had been watching them the whole weekend. Lisbon's injuries were serious enough to keep Jane by her side all the time. Serious, but not life-threatening. Which meant his plan failed._

_At first he'd been furious. He'd prepared everything carefully, checked every detail, from the number of cameras in the building to agent Lisbon's favourite drink, and yet his flawless plan had been spoiled by a stupid consultant! But he would keep trying again and again, and finally he would succeed, no matter how many friends of Teresa Lisbon would be around to interrupt. He just had to wait for an appropriate moment._

_Suddenly he noticed that Jane had left the room. That was strange, as he hadn't gone out since Friday. Finally, some good news. He looked out of the nearest window and spotted Jane, getting into a cab. Just perfect._

_Time to act._

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><p>When Jane finally arrived at the CBI headquarters at half past ten, the rest of the team was already there.<p>

"Jane!" Van Pelt literally jumped when she saw him. "Where on Earth have you been? Something must've happened to Lisbon, she's not here yet, she's not answering her phone. Her office is a mess, and there's blood on the floor, stains of blood..."

Shit. He had forgotten about it. He could imagine how scared they'd been when they saw that. Jane sighed. "Lisbon is in the hospital. She got shot on Friday."

"Oh my God..." Van Pelt covered her mouth. "How? Why? Who could possibly do that?"

"I don't know." Jane sat on his couch and told them the whole story. He could see they were terrified.

"Why didn't you call any of us?" asked Cho when he finished. "Maybe we could do something."

"I don't know. I didn't... think of it. It was all so crazy..."

Van Pelt sat next to him. She had tears in her eyes, though she was trying to hide it. "How is she now?"

"Doctors say she'll be fine... But she didn't try to get out of bed or argue with me, so I think it'll take some time."

"Can we go visit her?"

Jane hesitated for a while. "I'm not sure if it's a good idea. I'll call her doctor and ask." He took out his mobile phone and dialled Gabrielle's number.

"Sorry guys," he said when he finished the call. "Her doctor said, only one guest today."

"Cho should go," decided Van Pelt immediately. Cho was close to Lisbon, closer than her or Rigsby. She was worried about her boss, of course, but Cho really needed to check Lisbon was fine himself. She could see how nervous he was.

He sent her a grateful look. "Thanks," he mumbled.

She smiled sadly and stood up. "Just call us later, will you?"

"Sure."

When Jane and Cho left, she turned to Rigsby. "Who could want to hurt Lisbon?" She shook her head. "Terrible."

Rigsby didn't answer, but he was shocked too. Lisbon was a tough cop, but she had never done anything wrong or dishonest. Sometimes it just wasn't enough, though. "You know, she's sent many people to jail. And no matter if they deserved it or not, some of them would seek for revenge."

Van Pelt wiped the tears away. "I'll tell Minelli what happened," she said with a sigh. "We have to find that bastard before he hurts her again."

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><p>"Okay, see you in an hour." Gabrielle put her mobile phone into her pocket and entered Lisbon's room.<p>

This time Lisbon was awake. She smiled at the doctor and tried to sit up.

"Don't move." Gabrielle waved her hand. "How do you feel today?"

"Fine. Comparing to yesterday, just perfect." The previous night she'd had a high fever, and her stomach hurt so much she had to get morphine again. She'd lain in the dark room, half-conscious from pain, praying for the end of that nightmare. Thankfully the meds helped and she felt way better now.

"Good to hear that. Maybe Patrick will finally sleep tonight," said Gabrielle without much thinking.

Lisbon gave her a surprised look. "What do you mean?"

"Um, nothing, it's just... He's really worried about you." Patrick would kill her. "I haven't seen him so upset since... You know."

Lisbon nodded slightly. "How long have you known Jane... Patrick?"

Gabrielle laughed. "Oh my God, like, forever. He lived in the neighbourhood since I remember. We spent the whole childhood together." She sighed. "He used to be a different man then."

"Did you know his wife?"

"Angela? Yes, we met a few times. Jane loved her like crazy, and when their daughter was born, he was the happiest man in the world. Every time we met he talked about her - her first smile, first tooth, first words." She smiled sadly. "Then I moved to New Jersey for a few years. One morning, he called me out of the blue. He could barely speak, but begged me to come. It was..." She couldn't find the right words to describe that unspeakable crime. "He was insane with grief. I've never seen him like that. You can't imagine... And I was frightened, frightened that he could do something incredibly stupid." She didn't finish, but they both knew what she meant. _That he could try to kill himself._

Both women had tears in their eyes. Gabrielle quickly composed herself. "You should be resting, and I'm telling you such depressing things. But you really helped him, you know? He is... much calmer now. Or at least was, until Friday. He was so scared when he saw you, lying here, attached to all these devices. All the memories hit him again. He really cares about you, and if he'd lost you too, it would be the end of his world. He wouldn't be able to cope with it."

Gabrielle's pager beeped. She glanced at it and stood up. "I'm sorry, but I have to run. By the way, Patrick will be here in... half an hour. With a guest."

"A guest? Who?"

"I don't know, probably someone from your team."

"Oh my God. Do you have a hairbrush? And a face powder?"

Gabrielle laughed. "Now I'm sure you feel better. I'll see what I can get," she said and left.

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><p>Before Jane and Cho came, Gabrielle brought Lisbon some cosmetics and helped her smarten up a bit. The effect was far from perfect, but at least she looked like a human.<p>

"Knock, knock." Jane entered the room, smiling widely. "I have a surprise." He pointed at Cho.

Cho was carrying the biggest teddy bear Lisbon had ever seen. He grinned when he saw her surprised face. "A gift from the team," he said, placing the teddy on a chair next to her bed.

"Hey!" Jane protested. "It was my chair!"

"Sorry, Jane, I have a new guard,"said Lisbon, smiling at his offended face expression.

Cho took another chair and pulled it closer to Jane. "You can always have this."

"That one was special," he said, but finally gave up.

Cho just stood next to him, carefully studying Lisbon's face. "Good to see you, boss," he said eventually.

She could tell from his voice that he was nervous.

"How do you feel?"

"Good, really. Jane can tell you I'm all better. I can actually go home today. "She sat up and reached for the teddy, but almost immediately doubled over with pain. "Okay," she said through clenched teeth. "Maybe tomorrow."

Cho tried to smile. "Van Pelt and Rigsby wanted to come too, but your doctor didn't let them."

"Oh yes, Gabrielle can be really stubborn if she wants to." Jane glanced at Lisbon. "Probably all bosses in the world are like that. You know... bossy."

Lisbon rolled her eyes, but before she could answer, a nurse entered the room, carrying an IV drip.

"Oh, please." Lisbon groaned. "Not again."

The nurse smiled and raised her arms. "I only do what I was told to. Doctor Marks makes all decisions. You can talk to her if you want,"she said, connecting the IV.

"Oh, I'm sure she knows what she's doing. It's just annoying. I feel like a dog on a leash." She waved her arm impatiently.

The nurse laughed and left.

"Maybe it's not the best moment, boss, but..." Cho hesitated for a while. "Van Pelt talked to Minelli. He let us take this case... Your case. We will start the investigation as soon as possible."

Lisbon smiled at him. "Thank you. But I'm afraid I won't tell you much. I didn't see anyone there, didn't hear anything. I have no idea where to start..." She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. "Oh my God."

"Lisbon?" Jane stood up, alarmed. "Are you okay?"

She tried to focus on his face. "It's fine, I just... feel faint," she said slowly. Her heart was racing, as if she'd just run a marathon. "Too many drugs, I guess."

"Maybe I should go tell-" Jane didn't finish, as the alarming beeping of the heart rate monitor filled the room. "Lisbon? Hey, Lisbon!"

She didn't answer.

Cho quickly ran towards the door. "Somebody help us!"

Gabrielle appeared immediately, followed by two nurses. She glanced at the monitor. "Teresa? Teresa, can you hear me?" She grabbed Lisbon's arm and shook her gently, with no result. "Shit."

One of the nurses stepped towards Jane and Cho. "I'm sorry, but you have to wait outside."

Jane wanted to protest, but the nurse interrupted him. "It's not the best moment for arguments, really."

"Gabby, what's going on? What's wrong with her?"

"Just go." Gabrielle waved her hand, leaning over Lisbon. "I need a crash cart in here, now!" she shouted, her voice trembling slightly.

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><p><strong>Oh yes, I know - what a cliched ending :) But this way you'll have to read the next chapter to check if I killed Lisbon! The next one will be better, I promise. Less hospitals, more action... I hope.<strong>

**As always, thanks for reading, and please review!**


	4. Touch and Go

**Okay, here's the next chapter! Turns out I write way too much about hospitals, but well... The next chapter will be almost hospital-free. Almost :)  
>As always, thanks for all the reviews, alerts and favs. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter!<strong>

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><p>After Jane and Cho had left, Van Pelt and Rigsby immediately started working. They had very little information, but were determined to solve the case as quickly as possible.<p>

"There's nothing useful here." Van Pelt finished watching the security footage from Friday night and turned the video off with frustration. "Only you and me, then Jane leaving the building, Jane coming back an hour later, paramedics..." The video was low quality, but even in black and white the whole scene looked frightening. "I'm sure no one except us was here."

"But it doesn't make any sense!" Rigsby shook his head. "She didn't shoot herself."

"Then someone must have been in her office. Jane left, Lisbon went in, the attacker shot her."

"And flew out of the window?"

"Right, I haven't thought about it..." Van Pelt hesitated for a while and took the photos of the 'crime scene'. She still didn't have the guts to enter Lisbon's office. "Jane said she was lying with her head to the door. Which would mean that the attacker stood by the window. Or that he shot from outside."

Rigsby stood up and looked out of the nearest window. "That building opposite... It is abandoned, isn't it?"

"Yes. Damn it!" She hid her face in her hands. "The bastard chose a perfect place – no cameras, no security, not a soul anywhere. We have absolutely nothing now, we'll never find him."

"We have the bullet – that's always something to start with. And maybe Lisbon saw something."

"Maybe…" Van Pelt stood up. "Let's go and check that building. I can't sit here doing nothing, it's driving me mad."

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><p>Gabrielle leaned against the wall and looked at the piece of paper in her hand. "I can't believe it. Patrick, I'm so sorry, I don't know how that happened..."<p>

"How _what_ happened?" Cho interrupted her, his fists still clenched - with anger or fear, Gabrielle wasn't sure. "What happened to Lisbon?"

"This," she showed him the paper, "is the result of tox scan. We analysed the content of Teresa's IV, and it showed a huge concentration of thiopental. Someone messed with her meds, but I can't imagine who would do that."

"Thiopental? I've heard that name somewhere...What is it?"

"It's a drug commonly used in anesthesia. Usually it causes loss of consciousness in less than a minute, but it can be very dangerous, because high doses may provoke cardiovascular and respiratory depression – which happened to Teresa."

"Gabby, please, speak English." Jane sent her a tired look. "We don't understand a word."

"The drug causes airway obstruction, which may result in apnea – which basically means that the patient stops breathing. The blood pressure decreases as well, and some severe heart problems may occur. If any of this happens, the patient needs _immediate_ help. Without it, death occurs within ten minutes from the injection." She turned to Cho. "You might have heard about it before, because it's also used for lethal injections. Whoever added it to Teresa's medication, knew exactly what they were doing. Thank God you were there."

Jane looked shocked. "So it was all planned? Then why didn't they wait until she was alone?"

Gabrielle shook her head. "I don't know. But that mistake saved her life."

Jane turned to look at Lisbon through the glass wall. "When will she wake up?"

"It's hard to tell. Elimination of thiopental takes several hours, we need to give her time." She shut her eyes. "Jesus, how could that happen?"

"We'll find the bastard, I swear." The fire in Cho's eyes scared Gabrielle. She had known him only for a few hours, but was sure that this quiet man would kill whoever attacked his boss with cold blood. "Can we talk to the nurse that administered the IV?"

"Of course, but I'm sure she didn't do anything. Someone must have added thiopental earlier."

"We'll see. What's her name?"

"Mary Roberts. I'll send her to you."

"Thank you." Jane tried to smile. "But first of all, we have to think how to protect Lisbon. We can put bodyguards in front of her door, but we can't do anything when it comes to drugs."

"I will discharge her as soon as possible, but now she's too weak." Gabrielle shook her head. "And she has lost a lot of blood, she needs hydration."

"Gabs, I know I shouldn't ask you to do that... But you're the only person I trust here. Could you – and you only – take care of her? Maybe that nurse is innocent, I don't know. But what about the rest? Someone tried to kill Lisbon again, and that person had the access to drugs. I know it's not your job, I know it's a lot to ask for... But we're terrified, terrified and completely helpless. We can't fight something we can't see. We can't protect her."

"Of course, you don't even have to ask. I just have to talk to my boss, explain the situation to him, but I'll be back in fifteen minutes. Meanwhile you can talk to Mary."

* * *

><p>Lisbon opened her eyes. She felt sick and dizzy, her head was spinning round and black dots danced in front of her eyes. <em>Not very good<em>, she thought.

It was raining outside. Raindrops tapped rhythmically on the windowsill, making her feel sleepy. She didn't remember what had happened. She tried to focus, but her confused brain refused to cooperate.

Jane and Gabrielle stood outside the room, talking quietly. She couldn't hear them, but their serious expressions told her something was wrong... again.

Two men approached them. Lisbon recognized them instantly – agents Burton and Tibbs, their colleagues from CBI. They were both tall and well-built and looked pretty scary to an average passer-by. She assumed they'd be her bodyguards from that moment.

She sighed with irritation and looked around the room. _What the hell happened?_

Her eyes fell on the IV. Of course. The nurse had come, administered the drugs, she had lost consciousness. That must be the reason of all that mess.

The murderer must be really desperate. It was a lame try, drugging her in the hospital, where she was surrounded by doctors, had been almost ridiculous. The first try had been more... professional. And, if it hadn't been for Jane, it could have been successful. Lisbon shivered. There were many people who didn't exactly love her, but who would want her dead so desperately?

She closed her eyes and made a quick mental list. It didn't look very good. They solved – approximately – one case a week. It meant four cases a month, fifty two cases a year. They'd caught six hundred twenty four murderers since she started working in the police.

Six hundred twenty four people with a motive. Plus their friends, relatives, partners in crime.

Lisbon's sad thoughts were interrupted by Gabrielle. She entered the room, smiling hesitantly. "Welcome back to the world of living," she said jokingly. "How do you feel?"

Lisbon rolled her eyes. "My favourite question. Not that bad, actually. What happened?"

"It was an anaphylactic reaction to drugs we gave you. Apparently you are allergic to them. We've changed them already and everything is fine now. You may feel dizzy for some time, but it's normal, don't worry."

Lisbon looked surprised. "Allergic reaction?"

"Yes. Nothing to worry about."

"So what were Burton and Tibbs doing here?"

It was Gabrielle's turn to be surprised. "Who?"

"The two agents I saw with you and Jane a few minutes ago."

"Oh, them. They brought some papers for Patrick. I wasn't listening to their conversation, so I have no idea what it was about. But I'm pretty sure it was about you," she added with a small smile and left the room, leaving the confused Lisbon alone.

She almost believed Gabrielle. Almost. But then she noticed a familiar black suite and she knew that Burton was standing outside her door. Her suspicions were confirmed when Gabrielle looked in his direction and bowed her head slightly when leaving the room.

She had two fully armed bodyguards. If Minelli sent Tibbs and Burton, they were all freaking out more than she expected. Or maybe the situation was more serious than she thought.

* * *

><p><em>Failure. Again. To be honest, he didn't expect to succeed this time, but it was definitely worth trying. 'The direct attack answers very seldom, but it saves time and to fail costs nothing.' Where had he read that? Oh yes, the irreplaceable Agatha Christie. The old lady was surprisingly clever. He wondered if she had ever killed anyone. Her descriptions were so detailed sometimes…<em>

_Maybe he should use one of her ideas. They were crazy sometimes, but actually feasible. He needed an inspiration, a fresh look._

_The two bodyguards in front of Lisbon's door discouraged him a bit. However, he was pretty sure that they would disappear the moment she'd leave the hospital. Teresa Lisbon wasn't the type of person who would walk around with two armed guards. She'd send them away, no doubt._

_He just had to be patient._


	5. Two Suspects

**Okay, so the action is slooowly moving forward. Without further ado, chapter five! :)**

* * *

><p>The abandoned building turned out to be an unfinished office block. Somebody left the construction halfway there, hammers and drills still lying on bare floors. It was five stores high and although Rigsby and Van Pelt were really fit, they had difficulties climbing the steep concrete stairs.<p>

On the third floor - or maybe fourth, they weren't sure - they were stopped by an unexpected voice.

"What are you doing here?"

They turned around and saw a boy - about ten or eleven years old, slim and short, with a childish grimace on his face. He was holding a baseball bat that was definitely too big and too heavy for him. He scanned their faces carefully, a hostile sparkle in his eyes. "It's a private property. I asked you a question!"

Van Pelt would have laughed, but something told her it was a bad idea. Instead, she flashed a friendly smile and took a step towards the boy. He instinctively raised the baseball bat. "I'm sorry, we didn't know that someone was here. We're with the CBI."

"You'd better put that down, or you'll hurt someone," added Rigsby, pointing at the bat.

"Don't tell me what to do," he spat and turned to Grace, ignoring Rigsby completely. "The CB what? Never heard of it. Do you work for the mafia?" He tried to look confident, but his hands were shaking a little. "Don't come closer!" he warned, as Van Pelt took another step towards him.

"We're not working for the mafia, don't worry. CBI is California Bureau of Investigation, here, have a look." She slid her hand into her jeans pocket to show him her badge. At that unfortunate moment her jacket raised just a bit, revealing the gun in its holster.

The boy panicked. In less than a second he jumped towards Van Pelt, raising his bat. "I won't let you shoot me!" he yelled, and hit her in the arm with all the strength he could muster. She groaned and took a step back. The kid raised the bat again, but before he could hit her once more, Rigsby nailed him to the floor. "We just wanted to talk," he hissed through clenched teeth, "but you leave us no choice."

"What the hell is going on in here?!"

A tall, slim man ran into the room, an air gun in his hand. Van Pelt instinctively grabbed her gun with her good hand and aimed at the man.

"Let him go, you bastard, or I'm calling the police! You have no right!" he yelled hysterically.

"He hit my colleague, so I believe we do have the right. And, just for your information, we are the police." Rigsby flashed his bagde, still holding the boy firmly. "Agents Wayne Rigsby and Grace Van Pelt, CBI."

The man lowered his air gun. "Jeff, you attacked an officer?" he asked with disbelief.

"She didn't say she was a cop," the boy murmured reluctantly. "It was self-defence."

"Against what, her deadly bagde?" asked Rigsby angrily, but loosened his grip. "By the way, you should know what CBI is, it's just opposite the street."

"Okay, okay. Let me go now," said Jeff. As Rigsby didn't move an inch, he rolled his eyes and added, "_Please__?_"

"Just don't touch the bat, okay?" Rigsby finally stood up and turned towards Grace. "Are you all right?" he asked with concern.

Van Pelt holstered her gun and carefully examined the injured arm. Her forearm was blue and swollen, not to mention it hurt like hell. She tried to move her hand, but almost immediately winced as the pain shot through her arm. "I just hope the wrist isn't broken," she said through clenched teeth. "Thanks, kiddo."

"Hey, I said I'm sorry, okay?" The boy answered aggressively. "What am I supposed to do, beg for your forgiveness? Not happening, miss, I am not the begging type."

"Jeff, enough." His father shot him an angry glare. "I am terribly sorry, agents. What can I do for you?"

"Our colleague was shot on Friday evening and we'd like to ask you a few questions, if you don't mind," said Rigsby. "Do you have a license for that, by the way?" He pointed at the air gun.

"Of course." The man took a paper from his pocket and showed it to Rigsby.

"Adam Powell," he read aloud. "Do you live here?"

"Well, we've been staying here for some time. I'm not sure if you can call this living, but yes, we're here for about two months."

"I see. Are there only the two of you?"

"Yes. There used to be a young man, but he left."

"When?"

"A month or two ago, I'm not sure."

Rigsby wrote it down. "Were you here between six and eight pm on Friday?"

"No, unfortunately." He shook his head. "I came back shortly before midnight, so I guess I won't be very helpful."

"Where were you then?"

"Working. I help elderly ladies - mow their lawns, clean the windows, repair small things. Jeff goes with me sometimes. He walks their dogs and do some lighter jobs."

"Was he with you on Friday?"

"No, he stayed here."

"What were you doing?" Van Pelt asked the boy.

"Sleeping, I guess. There's not much to do here." He shrugged his shoulders.

"And you didn't see or hear anything extraordinary?"

"Nope. But I sleep like a log, so even if someone had been here, I wouldn't have heard it."

"And you?" She turned to his father. "Did anything catch your attention?"

He shook his head. "It was very dark when I got back. We sleep in one of the large rooms on top floor, and I went straight there."

"I see. Can we get the address of the women you worked for on Friday?"

"Of course. I can give you their visiting cards." The man left the room and came back a few minutes later, holding several cards. He handed them to Van Pelt. "I went to Mrs Lopez first, then to Mrs Conelly and to Mrs Hascott in the end."

"We'll need to search the building as well. Please don't touch anything until the forensic team comes."

The man nodded. "Of course. I'm sorry I couldn't tell you more."

* * *

><p>"So what do you think?" Rigsby asked Van Pelt when they left the building.<p>

"First of all, I think that they shouldn't live there. We need to do something about it. The boy has to go to school, have a decent bed instead of an old sleeping bag, play football with friends. Have a childhood."

"We'll take care of it, but let's focus on the case now. Do you think that Powell could shoot Lisbon?"

"No, it's doesn't seem likely to me. Possible, of course, but not really probable. I'll look him up, maybe I will find something. I've never seen him before. Have you?"

"I'm not sure. We should ask Lisbon if the name sounds familiar to her."

Before Van Pelt could say anything, her cell phone rang. She glanced at the screen and answered it. "Hey Cho! What's up?" She was silent for a few moments. "Sure. Just a second, I'll write it down. We're out of the office, but I'll do it as soon as we get there. How is she?" She listened to Cho's reply and then hung up with a brief goodbye.

Rigsby sent her an anxious look. "Is everything all right?"

She shook her head. "There was another attack. Someone tried to poison Lisbon, thankfully with no success. But we need to hurry up, our killer is rather desperate."

Rigsby's jaw tightened, but he didn't say anything.

"Cho asked me to check the nurse that had been in charge when it had happened. We have two suspects, then. We have to check if there's any connection between them, though I highly doubt it."

They entered the CBI building and headed towards the elevators. The security officer greeted them with a nod. "Any good news?" he asked.

Rigsby shook his head. "Not yet. But we're doing our best."

"Well, good luck then. I hope you'll find him soon."

Once in their office, Van Pelt turned the computer on and started typing. It wasn't as fast as she usually did, though, beacuse her bad wrist refused to cooperate.

After she hissed with pain for the fifth time, Rigsby raised his head and sent her a worried look. "You should see a doctor, check if it's not broken."

"There's no time for it," she replied through clenched teeth.

"Don't be ridiculous." Rigsby walked towards her and sat at the edge of her desk. "We've got a case, a very important case. Lisbon is out, Jane will most probably spend every day in the hospital. That leaves only the three of us. And you'll be of little use in the field with only one good hand." His eyes softened. "Really, Grace, I hate to watch you suffer, especially when we have a doctor here in the CBI. Go and see Hannah, it will take you fifteen minutes."

Van Pelt sighed. "Fine. I'll just launch the search engine and then I'll go."

Rigsby smiled and came back to his own desk. "Do you think we need a warrant to search that building?"

"Check who the owner is. Most probably no one will find out about the search, but I think we should be prepared. And maybe call the old ladies, ask if we can come and talk." She gave him the visiting cards she'd got from Powell. "I'll be back as soon as possible."

"Okay." Rigsby nodded, already dialling the first number.

The old ladies must have led hopelessly boring lives, because all three of them instantly agreed to talk to a 'real agent' and in less than fifteen minutes he had the appointments set.

Just as he finished talking to Mrs Hascott, Cho came in. He greeted him with a nod and sat at his desk.

"How's Lisbon?" asked Rigsby, anxious what he would hear.

"She will be fine, but it was touch and go for a while. The bastard gave her an enormous dose of thiopental."

"Thiopental? Jesus." He couldn't believe it. "She must be scared as hell."

"We decided not to tell her the truth. The official version is that it was the allergic reaction, nothing more."

"And you seriously think she will buy it?" Rigsby raised his eyebrows. "I mean, come on, this is Lisbon we're talking about."

"I don't know." Cho ran his hand across his face. "We just want to protect her in every way we can. Did you check that nurse?"

"Van Pelt is doing it." He waved in the direction of her computer. "What about the security footage? Didn't the hospital cameras registered anyone?"

"There aren't any cameras. The hospital doesn't have CCTV."

"We're screwed." Rigsby's arms fell. "Anyone could do it."

"Jane is already talking to the personnel, maybe they noticed something useful." He didn't really count on it. Eye witnesses usually saw totally different things. A man - or maybe no, it was a short-haired woman. Tall - but not very tall. A blonde redhead. An old teenager. And so on, and so on. In most cases it was just a waste of time. But sometimes - not very often, maybe in one percent of cases - there happened to be someone with a good memory and sharp eyesight. Someone who noticed more than others, and who simply was in the right place at that very moment.

He really hoped, for his boss' sake, that it was that one percent that time.

Cho had worked with Lisbon for ten years already, from her first day at the CBI. For all that time he had learnt a lot about her, although he rarely showed it. He knew her secrets and weaknesses, could always tell when she was upset or worried, knew how to make her feel better. He wasn't really keen on showing emotions - God, what an understatement - but when they were alone, in the comforting darkness of her office, they became just two friends who shared their problems and trusted each other completely.

Cho knew Lisbon well - maybe even better than Jane, although the latter would never admit it - and really cared for her. Even though she was his boss, sometimes he felt responsible for her. That was stupid, he knew that, but he had seen her vulnerable and helpless more times than any other member of the team and knew that from time to time she just didn't want to be a tough, kick-ass cop. Not boss, not agent Lisbon. Just Teresa - a woman who needed a shoulder to cry on. It didn't happen very often of course - she didn't do crying - but still. After a particularly gruesome case, when an abusive father had killed his daughter without hesitation or remorse, they had spent the night sitting on the floor of Lisbon's office, neither of them saying anything. They hadn't had to, the comforting silence had been just what they'd both needed. She'd finally fallen asleep with her head on his shoulder, but slept restlessly, haunted by demons from her past.

He felt sorry for her sometimes. She was alone, didn't have anyone to talk to when she finally came back from work, to share her worries and scares. He himself knew all too well what it was like. There were her brothers, of course, but they didn't play a significant role in her everyday life. That was why she treated her team like a family, felt responsible for them, was always willing to help.

And that was why they couldn't let her down. They had to find the bastard who dared touch her. Not because that was their job.

Because they cared.


	6. No Foothold

**Okay, I know it's been ages since I updated that story... But have no fear, I won't abandon it, no matter what :)**

* * *

><p>"It doesn't look very good, you know." Hannah, the CBI's doctor, examined Van Pelt's swollen wrist carefully. "What on Earth happened to you?"<p>

Van Pelt shrugged her shoulders. "A kid hit me with a baseball bat."

"Oh yes, I should've guessed. By the way, you shouldn't let children play with heavy objects. It may be dangerous."

"I didn't give it to him! What the hell is wrong with you?" Van Pelt snapped angrily. "I'm a cop, not a babysitter, for God's sake."

Hannah raised her hands. "Okay, okay, I was just kidding. You don't need to yell at me."

Grace sighed and ran her hand through her hair. "I'm sorry. I guess I'm not in the mood today."

"Apology accepted." She smiled. "Now, about your wrist... You should have an X-ray done, but I don't think it's broken. Just don't strain it and it will be fine. Maybe stick to the desk work for some time?"

Van Pelt shook her head. "It's impossible, not now."

"Yeah, I've heard what happened." Hannah nodded. "It is terrible. Do you have anything already?"

"Not much, just some random clues and pure guesswork. But we're working on it."

"Kick the bastard's ass when you find him."

Van Pelt finally smiled. "Sure thing. Thanks for help."

"You're welcome. I hope you won't need medical attention any time soon, but you know where to find me." Hannah returned the smile. "Take care, Grace."

* * *

><p>When Grace entered the bullpen, Rigsby and Cho raised their heads.<p>

"Did you check the results?" she asked, waving towards her computer.

"Not yet, we waited for you." Cho watched her curiously. "What happened to your wrist?"

"Long story. But it will be fine in a week or two." She sat at her desk and typed something, then shook her head. "Adam Powell has clear record, there's nothing worth mentioning. And Mary Roberts... A ticket for speeding, four months ago. Nothing more."

"I thought so. We need to search that building, maybe we'll have more luck there."

Rigsby nodded. "I got the warrant and spoke to the forensic guys. They can go there at any moment."

"There's no point waiting." Cho stood up. "I'll go with them, I'd like to see the building."

"Who's the owner?" asked Van Pelt.

"At the beginning it belonged to Subway Enterprises, a huge steel company. A few months ago, however, their president made one wrong decision and they went bankrupt. The city council took over the building and they now try to sell it, with no success so far."

"Means no one will be interested in our search. Good. What about the three witches?"

"I called all of them, we can come tomorrow and ask as many questions as we'd like to. They are ready to help any moment."

Van Pelt smiled weakly. "Your personal charm is priceless. I think there's no need to visit all of them together. Each of us can go question one of them, it will be faster that way."

"Good idea." Rigsby nodded, took the visiting cards from the table and handed one to Van Pelt. "Lady number one, Mrs Rebecca Lopez. Lady number two, Mrs Tanya Conelly, is for Cho, and I'll take Mrs Sarah Hascott."

Van Pelt read the address and placed the card in her pocket. "If you want to join the techs, you should go," she reminded Cho. "We'll stay here, in case anything comes up."

Cho stood up. "Try to dig into Powell's life. Childhood, schools, university drama club, anything. And check why he's got a gun license." He grabbed his wallet and, after a moment of hesitation, his gun and left.

* * *

><p>Evenings in hospital were very quiet. After all the bedlam of the day demanding family members left, patients fell asleep and nurses could finally rest for a while.<p>

Lisbon was enjoying the blessed silence. She lay in her bed, perfectly still, trying not to wake Jane. He had fallen asleep only half an hour earlier, and she could see he desperately needed rest. He always slept very little, of course, but there was a huge difference between 'very little' and 'nothing at all'. He hadn't really left her bedside since Friday - apart those thirty minutes in the morning when he had gone to the headquarters to break the news to her team, which, by the way, hadn't ended very well - and he had done his best to stay alert all the time.

Lisbon knew that he hadn't slept at night, for any time she'd woken up - because of the pain, nightmare or just a noise outside - he'd been next to her in ten seconds, worry written all over his face.

She appreciated his presence. Although she would never admit it, she was scared as hell. She never feared known dangers, they were part of her job. A drug dealer pointing a gun at her was something she knew how to deal with. She could handle a lunatic with a knife, a gangster's girlfriend kicking and scratching, a suspect running away and Bertram yelling at her for fifteen minutes consecutively. All of these just made her heart beat a little faster, she knew what to do, and it was somehow reassuring.

But that one was different. Lisbon couldn't look danger in the eye. Didn't know who was responsible for it, what they wanted, where and how to search for them. She couldn't fight the invisible enemy.

All of that made her authentically terrified, and she was really grateful for Jane's presence. Whether he held her hand in the darkness, murmured soothing words or just sat there doing crossword, she felt better. Safer.

Jane stirred, as if he felt Lisbon was thinking about him, and opened his eyes.

"Hello, Sleeping Beauty," she joked.

He ran his hand through his hair, making it even messier than it had already been, and smiled. "Hi. What's the time?"

"Half past eight."

He winced. He let her out of his sight for half an hour. "I didn't mean to fall asleep at all," he said.

"Why not? You keep repeating that sleep is good for your health," Lisbon teased. "And make me sleep most of the day."

"You misunderstood, my dear Lisbon, as always. It's good for _your_ health, not mine. I didn't get shot recently, you know."

"Doesn't mean you're a robot." She smiled gently. "Go home and get some rest. I'm not running away, I promise."

"Just try, and you'll be grounded here for the next two hundred years," he murmured. "I'm not going anywhere."

Lisbon rolled her eyes. "Is there a chance you will listen to me one day?"

Jane grinned. "Not even the slightest."

* * *

><p>Jeff lay in his makeshift bed thinking about the events of the day. The three agents - rather scary at first - turned out to be very nice. He wondered what it was like to chase dangerous criminals on a daily basis. "Dad?" he whispered. "Are you asleep?"<p>

Adam shifted a little. "It's nearly midnight, of course I am. What's up?" he asked sleepily.

"How do you think, what should I do to become an agent? Like, you know, agent Rigsby."

Adam turned to face his son. "Finish school, go to police academy, have good grades and get chosen by the FBI," he said. "But I thought you detested cops."

"Cops, not _agents_. They're so cool."

"Oh, really? What's the difference, then?" Adam's white teeth flashed in the darkness as he smiled widely.

"Are you kidding? Agents chase down murderers, solve complicated cases and put dangerous criminals behind bars. A cop can give you a ticket for speeding. Or yell at you for not going to school." The boy crossed his arms.

Jeff's experience with the police wasn't very pleasant so far. Every visit of the officers revolved around his education, or rather lack of it. He didn't care, he was perfectly fine without it. How would English literature help him in everyday life? _Sure, can't wait to start classes. I'm so thrilled!_, he usually replied with a smirk.

But if it was agent Van Pelt who asked him to go to school, who knows? Maybe he would think about it...

Drifting off to sleep, he thought about the three of them. Agent Rigsby, tall and muscular, so confident and bossy... Agent Van Pelt, a kick-ass redhead... Her smile when he finally got the guts to apologize for hitting her... He winced when he thought of her swollen wrist. That was incredibly stupid of him... And agent Cho, with his mysterious, emotionless face expression... Like a silent assassin...

Jeff finally gave himself up to tiredness, plunging into wild dreams including the three agents in ninja costumes, fast as lightning, fighting villains with no effort...

* * *

><p>At that very moment, Jeff's heroes were indeed fighting villains, but it wasn't as spectacular as he thought.<p>

It was well past their working hours, but no one noticed it, and even if they had, it wouldn't have changed anything. They weren't going to waste a single minute.

"Did you find out anything?" Cho sat at his desk with a cup of coffee in his hand.

Rigsby shook his head. "Nothing that could be useful. Powell had an ordinary childhood, attended an ordinary school, had ordinary friends, ordinary Spanish lessons, then an ordinary university degree. He met a girl, got married, Jeff was born. Then there was a divorce that left him penniless and a downward spiral from then. But he's clean, apart from the obvious fact that Jeff doesn't go to school."

"What else can we do?"

"Tonight? Not much."

"Did the techs find anything in that building?"

Cho shrugged his shoulders. "There are footprints on the stairs leading to the roof, but that won't help us much. Besides, Powell said he'd been there a few times."

"Was there anything on the roof?"

"It rained on Saturday. Even if there had been anything to find, water had already washed it."

"We're back to square one." Rigsby looked dejected. "Now we can only go through all Lisbon's cases and see who would have a motive." He smiled dryly.

"Let's." Van Pelt straightened a bit and turned her computer on. "It's worth a try."

Cho watched her sceptically for a while.

"Please?" Van Pelt looked determined. "We have to do anything that seems to be just a tiny bit useful, or I'll go crazy."

"Okay." He sighed and switched his own computer on as well. "Where should we start, how do you think?"

Rigsby shrugged his shoulders. "Dunno. From the latest case, I guess."

Van Pelt shook her head. "That will take ages. For starters, let's check if any of the people Lisbon put behind bars have left prison recently."

"So we're going for the vengeance scenario?"

"I think it's the only reasonable one, as for now."

"I can think of another one that is equally reasonable," said Cho quietly.

The three agents exchanged worried looks, but none of them dared say it aloud.

_Red John._


End file.
